History Of The Emultion Lodge Of Improvement, No. 256.——(Continued).

Warden . In consequence of the late hour at which the lodge had been opened ( nearly eight o ' clock ) the speeches at the table were necessarily brief , as usual the lion ' s share of praise falling upon the indefatigable S . B . Wilson . A handsome Secretary ' s jewel was presented to Bro . Luis Arttis , who , in responding to a special toast of his health ,

thanked the brethren most warmly for their great kindness , and expressed a hope that he might ever continue worthy of their esteem and regard . As several brethren " enlivened the proceedings by their vocal exertions , " we may take it for granted that this was

rather " a late sitting . " At the next meeting of the lodge , on the 6 th of December , the Secretary was directed " to write to the W . AI . of the

Lodge of Unions , apologising for the inadvertent omission ot the usual toast to that lodge at the late Festival . " This resolution was fully carried out by Bro . Fenn ( who took the responsibility for the omission upon himself , it being his first Festival as Secretary ) in a way that gave every satisfaction to the members of the parent lodge , the W . AI .

writing a very agreeable and brotherly reply , both the apology and acceptance thereof being duly recorded on the minutes of the lodge . On the 31 st of January , 1862 , "It was proposed by Bro . J . Hervey , seconded by Bro . J . Pike , and carried

unanimously , that the pair of globes offered by Bro . Fenn be accepted , and that the very cordial thanks of the lodge to Bro . Fenn , for his kind present , be recorded on the minutes . " On the 25 th of April the committee reported the death of Bro . William Rice , who had been Tyler of the lodge for

many years , and recommended the election of Bro . John Daly in his place . The recommendation was adopted and Bro . Daly was thereupon invested . " It was proposed by Bro . Fenn , seconded by Bro . Wilson , and carried unanimously , that the regret of the Lodge at the

death of Bro . Rice , and an acknowledgment of his faithful services during a period of ... . years , be recorded on the minutes . "

Bro . Rice was a Past Alaster of the Royal Athelstan Lodge , and joined the Emulation Lodge of Improvement in 18 33 . We have no means of ascertaining how long he had held the office of Tyler , but he probably worked as a member of the lodge before being appointed to that office . He was a pre-union Alason , having been initiated as far back as Alarch

, 1813 , in No . 350 , Jersey . His successor was a Past Alaster of the Zetland Lodge , No . 511 , and a protegee of Stephen Barton Wilson . He joined the " Emulation " in 1859 , and was a diligent worker in the lodge until his appointment as Tyler ; he seldom missed

a meeting , and was one of the notable three who attended on the 16 th of August , when the lodge was not opened for want of a sufficient number of members . Bro . Daly was thoroughly conversant in the ceremonies and sections according to the " Emulation " system , and

occasionally worked them at other lodges of instruction , when the richness of his brogue and his elocutionary gestures never failecl to rivet the attention of the audience . The writer was indebted to Bro . Daly for much of his knowledge of the " Emulation working , " but he sometimes finds it difficult to forgive him for not having taken greater care of the old minute books of the lodge .

On the 30 th of May the lodge was attended by forty-three members and seventeen visitors , including most of the leading London Alasons of the day . The occasion of this unusual gathering being the reading by Bro . Dollman of an essay by S . B . Wilson , on "The Necessity of Maintaining the Ancient Landmarks of the Order , The Incompatibility of Innovation

, and The Rise , Progress , and Design of our Lectures . " On a motion by Bro . John Havers , J . G . W ., seconded by J . L . Evans , S . G . D ., a vote of thanks was passed to Bro . S . B . Wilson for his interesting essay . This essay was printed in the Freemasons' Magazine for

June 7 th , 1862 . With regard to the latter part of the title , " The Rise , Progress , and Design of our Lectures . " I find that the venerable essayist derived his ideas to a considerable extent from the writings of William Preston and Dr . Oliver ,

both of whom , in dealing with historical Alasonry , drew too liberally on their imagination to be perfectly reliable . On the 3 rd of October the permanent officers and committee were unanimously re-elected for the ensuing year .

The annual Festival was held on the 28 th of November , when part of the Second and the whole of the Third Lectures were worked by S . 13 . . Wilson , assisted by the following brethren : —F . Alead , No . 273 ; C . A . Alurton , P . AI . No . 7 ; T . Fenn , W . AI . No . 188 ; W . Hollingworth , No . 76 ; and J . R . Thomson , W . AI . No . 1008 . Eighty-six members and

106 visitors were present ; twenty-nine of the latter were proposed to become members . The usual vote of thanks to the workers having been passed , the brethren adjourned to the banquet , presided over by J . Rankin Stebbing , Vice-President of the Board of

General Purposes , who was supported by many Grand Officers and other distinguished members of the Order . A full report of the proceedings appears in the Freemasons ' Magazine of December 6 th , 1862 . This report contains no mention of singing ; we may therefore assume that , on this

occasion , vocal harmony was dispensed with . On the 27 th of February , 186 3 , "Bro . Fenn read an essay by Bro . S . B . Wilson on the different answers to the question— ' In this Country , Freemasons' Lodges being usually heldetc '"

, This essay was printed in pamphlet form in 186 4 , for private distribution , as " No . 4 . " Any profit , after the expenses of publication , was to have been equally divided between the Girls' and Boys' Institutions .

On the 2 nd of October Bro . Fenn , who had been absent from the lodge for several months , " stated that , from the circumstances of his residing in the country , he was unable to continue his duties as Secretary of the Lodge , and tendered his resignation . "

( To be Continued ) .